[Kimmers]

"I called Harley Davidson and Harley Davidson told me that the neck number and the engine numbers do not have to match," said Blakemore."

I am posting this in case that happens to any of our FReeper bikers.....

[Thane_Banquo]

Despite the unfortunate situation, he did get his bike back. I was thinking how lucky we are to live in this country. In China, not only would he not have gotten his bike back, but he would probably have been shot and his bike sold overseas to grease the pocket of some local bureaucrat.

[IYAS9YAS]

Cripes. The cops have never heard of an engine swap? Morons. The only thing the cops should have checked was to see if the bike was stolen by using the VIN, not whether the numbers matched between the engine and frame.

[kbennkc]

It is rare to find such stupidity even among cops . The neck and engine numbers on many years of Harleys are not the same . The neck number on my 1983 is a longer number , which includes the engine number . My oldest Harley came from the factory with engine number only , no frame number . One of my bikes has an older frame numbered by the State as special construction and has the engine out of another bike of mine , which now has a new engine , the number of which does not match anything . S&S , CCI and a host of others have made an industry of providing replacement engines for Harleys . Changing engines is not altering serial numbers . Sheesh .

[RJL]

"It's just a situation where the detectives looked at it through their training it didn't look right as far as the VIN so that's why it was towed," said Lt. Duhamell.

Private property, innocent until proven guilty, gathering evidence to show a crime has been committed, all that is out the door, if it doesn't look right!

[mkjessup]

This was probably just a rehearsal for the local cops to make an appearance on ‘COPS’, and they weren’t quite ready for their close up.

Everybody relax, ok? ;)

[Domandred]

So the police just walked around the parking lot looking at motorbike vins and jacked bikes that they thought *might* be stolen?

Don’t suppose they had a warrant for their search and seizure did they?

Sounds to me like they were there first for the purpose of confiscating bikes, then using the vins as “probable cause”

[Marauder]

So now, if a LEO thinks something is stolen he is presumed correct and the owner has to prove otherwise?

I have an old Triumph, not a Harley, but this is good information to have. Might be good to keep a registration slip with the bike to keep misinformed LEOs off your back, I guess.

[Leo Farnsworth]

Well, with all this bail out crap going on in Wall Street right now...

This mans’ HD would never have been ‘jacked’ by the police if the US had not bailed out Harley Davidson about 10 years before this motorcycle in question was manufactured.

Harley would have closed. Perhaps someone would have bought the name and assets and created new Harley's...but I doubt the ‘new’ HD would be anywhere near as robust as it is now.

Food for thought....

[martin_fierro]

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[Kakaze]

Indy, is in the midst of huge murder year. Bodies in the allys, old cars, just tossed on the side of the road...

Rather than do something about that, they jack around looking at motorcycles and call it undercover work, while the gang / drug wars continue unabated.

Worthless.

[kempo]

I was a cop for 32 years and it is very apparent those officers were not properly trained to do their assigned duties. I don't blame the guy for being pissed. I know I would have been.

[Poser]

My bike has only one verifiable part from the original bike; the left side case with the motor number. As far as I can tell, there isn’t one other part that goes with that case.

Of course, my frame has no number at all. It never did.

[thefactor]

when i got auto crime training, the instructors said there are HUGE numbers of bikes that were bought legally but that have some stolen parts on them. if you buy used, be wary. there is a huge market in this stuff and it is so easy to do.

yeah, it was a mistake. but it was an honest one. the cops had probable cause to tow it, but perhaps a more seasoned cop who knows more than just the law on the books would have been better at ID'ing actual stolen bikes.

[bmwcyle]

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